The awareness and knowledge of students and dental practitioners and postgraduate at Qassim University about TMD examination and treatment and diagnosis: a crosssectional study

Abstract

Background:Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) is considered one of the most common musculoskeletal conditions that affect the masticatory system. The consequences of TMD include pain and functional limitations. Early diagnosis and proper management are important for avoiding chronic pain and permanent tissue damage. Our cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the level of awareness and knowledge in terms of TMD examination and diagnosis, as well as treatment, among dental students, postgraduate students, and dental practitioners at Qassim University, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study using a structured, validated online questionnaire was distributed to 98 participants. The eligible participants include fourth-year students (27.6%), postgraduate students (9.2%), fifth-year students (12.2%), interns (15.3%), and dental practitioners (35.7%). The survey investigated the general demographics and the 25 items classifying knowledge and awareness of TMD etiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis. For comparing scores with respect to genders and their academic/professional statuses, non-parametric tests (Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests) were used at a less than 0.05 level of significance. Results: The overall mean knowledge score of participants was 16.97±2.71 with a maximum score of 21. Around 74.5% of participants have satisfactory knowledge. There were significant differences in knowledge scores across academic and professional status (p = 0.024). Postgraduate students (18.67 ± 1.32) and interns (18.13 ± 1.68) had the highest scores, and fifth-year (15.25 ± 4.05) and fourth-year students (16.04 ± 2.83) had the lowest scores. In contrast, the mean awareness score regarding TMD management was very low at 0.51 ± 0.89 out of 4. Of the participants, 88.8% had poor to moderate awareness. Many people had false beliefs about treatment protocols. For example, 60.2% incorrectly agreed that occlusal grinding is an effective early treatment. Likewise, over 50% incorrectly believed that orthodontic treatment prevents or treats TMD. The knowledge and awareness scores of males and females did not differ significantly. Conclusion: Within a small included sample, there was a good basic knowledge of TMD aetiology and clinical signs among students, postgraduates, and dental practitioners. However, there is an alarming ignorance and widespread unawareness of evidence-based management and treatment of TMD. Educational and specialized clinical training programs should focus on addressing this gap in practical management guidelines. Given the small percentage of participants, our data is limited. Future large-scale randomized trials are needed to confirm these findings.